Remismund (or Rimismund) (died 469) was the Suevic king of Galicia from c. 464 until his death. According to

Isidore of Seville Isidore of Seville ( la, Isidorus Hispalensis; c. 560 – 4 April 636) was a Spanish scholar, theologian, and archbishop of Seville. He is widely regarded, in the words of 19th-century historian Montalembert, as "the last scholar of ...

, Remismund was a son of

Maldras Maldras (or Masdras) (died February 460) was the Suevic king of Galicia from 456 until his death. After the execution of Rechiar by the victorious Visigoths, the Suevi are said to have established Maldras on the throne. During his reign the Suevi ...

. Remismund's early career was spent as an ambassador between Galicia and

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

, which trip he made several times.Thompson, 167. After an

interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...

of approximately four years (460–464), during which the Sueves who had previously recognised Maldras as king were led by

Frumar Frumar (or Frumarius) (died 464) was a Suevic warlord who succeeded Maldras (who was assassinated in February 460), as leader of the Suevic group then raiding Lusitania.Thompson, 167. Hydatius wrote: ''Inter Frumarium et Rechimundum oritur de regni ...

and those who had recognised

Framta Framta, Framtan or Framtane ( Latin: ''Framtanus'', Spanish: ''Frantán''; died 457) was one of the kings of the Suevi in Galicia in 457. After the death of the Suevic king Rechiar, executed by the conquering Visigoths, and the Warnic king Aiou ...

followed

Rechimund Richimund or Rechimund was a Suevic leader in Galicia from 457 until about 464. He was not recorded as a king (''rex''), though Hydatius wrote that ''inter Frumarium et Rechimundum oritur de regni potestate dissensio'' ("between Frumar and Rechimund ...

while both their leaders fought for the throne, Remismund, returning from one of his embassies, succeeded in having himself recognised as king of a unified Suevic people. This occurred after Frumar's death, but scholars are not certain of the significance of that statement. Had Frumar become sole king? Or did Remismund initially succeed Frumar only over part of the Suevic nation? Furthermore, Remismund is sometimes identified with Rechimund. Remismund was confirmed in the kingship when the

Visigothic The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is ...

monarch, Theodoric II, sent him gifts, including weapons, and a Gothic princess for a wife.Thompson, 168. The involvement of Theodoric in the succession of Remismund has, however, been exaggerated by

Jordanes Jordanes (), also written as Jordanis or Jornandes, was a 6th-century Eastern Roman bureaucrat widely believed to be of Gothic descent who became a historian later in life. Late in life he wrote two works, one on Roman history ('' Romana'') an ...

, who claims that after the Gothic king put down the revolt and usurpation of

Aioulf Aioulf or Ag(r)iwulf (died June 457) was an obscure king of Galicia from 456. In 448, after eight years in captivity, the Roman ambassador Censorius was executed by one Agiulf at Seville (''Hispalis''). This Agiulf has sometimes been identified wi ...

, he allowed the Suevi to elect a king of their own, and they chose Remismund. In 466, on the authority of

Hydatius Hydatius, also spelled Idacius (c. 400 – c. 469) was a late Western Roman writer and clergyman. The bishop of Aquae Flaviae in the Roman province of Gallaecia (almost certainly the modern Chaves, Portugal, in the modern district of Vila Real), he ...

, Theodoric sent an envoy,

Salla Salla (''Kuolajärvi'' until 1936) ( smn, Kyelijävri) is a municipality of Finland, located in Lapland. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The nearby settlement of ...

, to the court of Remismund. Remismund may have sent one Palagorius, a noble Galician, as an envoy to Theodoric, but it is possible that Palagorius went on a private mission.Thompson, 209. In 465 he sacked

Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2011 census was 143,397, in an area of . The fourth-largest urban area in Portugal after Lisbon, Porto, and Braga, it is the largest cit ...

or Conímbriga and in 468 destroyed it, plundering the goods of a noble family called the Cantabri.Thompson, 201. In 469 the city of

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administrative limits w ...

was betrayed to the Suevi by a native Roman named Lusidius. Also in 469 Remismund began negotiations with the Roman Emperor

Anthemius Procopius Anthemius (died 11 July 472) was western Roman emperor from 467 to 472. Perhaps the last capable Western Roman Emperor, Anthemius attempted to solve the two primary military challenges facing the remains of the Western Roman Empire: ...

through a large embassy of Sueves led by Lusidius. In 466 he requested an

Arian Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...

missionary from the Gothic court and received

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...

, a Gaul or Galatian, who converted the Suevic nobility and established an Arian church in Galicia.Arias, 21.

Sources

*Arias, Jorge C
"Identity and Interactions: The Suevi and the Hispano-Romans."
University of Virginia: Spring 2007. *Thompson, E. A. ''Romans and Barbarians: The Decline of the Western Empire''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1982. .

Notes

{{Galician monarchs 5th-century Suebian kings 469 deaths 5th-century Arian Christians Year of birth unknown